Outside Oxford, an angular family home breaks the mold

This three-bed Oxfordshire property is something of a unicorn. Inspired by the Ysios winery built by Santiago Calatrava in Spain, it featured on Grand Designs in 2022 and won the prize for Architectural Single Residence at the UK Property Awards. And now it’s on the market with The Modern House for £550,000.

Nicknamed ‘Skyline’, the home’s USP is its double-height glazing and diagonal larch cladding, which contrasts with the steely aluminium frame, unusual for Ambrosden, Oxfordshire. Rooms are organised around principles of height, light and volume. The kitchen and dining room look out to the double-level decked patio garden through a triple-height glass elevation. A wood staircase bathed in light ascends to a mezzanine sitting room with views out front and back. And the second-floor principal bedroom has floor-to-ceiling bifold doors that open to a decked balcony.

Two additional bedrooms on the first floor have their living rooms, terraces and mezzanine sleeping areas above.

There’s a shower room on the main floor and an en suite on the second with a skylight. Tall windows everywhere draw the eye upward, accounting for the name.

Designed by architect Steve Chance of London practice Chance de Silva, the house is a five-minute drive to Bicester Station and a 30-minute drive to Oxford. It has its own private studio space in the garden.